David Da Silva, currently facing criminal charges, denies he’s the author of a series of vicious tweets sent under his Twitter handle.

A Toronto criminal lawyer’s Twitter account has sparked outrage online after several offensive tweets were posted in the wake of the Boston bombing.

The tweets were sent last week from Twitter account @Dasilvalaw, which has since been deleted, though several retweets can still be found online.

“I pray for the suspects. May they slay the police army of satan. Death to all police!” reads one posting sent from @Dasilvalaw. Other tweets from that account contained vitriolic responses to offended Twitter users, including “am praying that u get violently raped. May cancer be upon u.!!!”

The lawyer, David Da Silva, 34, said in an emailed response sent Monday to the Star that he is “not the author of any such tweets.”

Asked in a follow-up email if his account had been hacked, the defence lawyer said he is “having this matter investigated at this time.”

Lawyer Nadia Liva, who sent an email to the Star saying she is acting as his counsel, said he is “very concerned” and “we are currently investigating the tweets, which were not authored by Mr. Da Silva.”

Some Twitter users, however, did assume he was behind the tweets.

“That was vile,” Toronto lawyer Andreas Papadopoulos tweeted.

On Monday, another Toronto lawyer, Sean Robichaud, tweeted his disgust at the “utterly vile” content sent from the Twitter account. Da Silva was a tenant renting space in Robichaud’s offices but was asked to leave for “unrelated reasons,” and before the tweets were sent. Robichaud added he doesn’t know if Da Silva sent the tweets.

Last fall, a judge acquitted Da Silva of charges that he beat, sexually assaulted and threatened to kill a woman whom he denied knowing well. She testified he was controlling, jealous and verbally and physically abusive. The judge found her testimony contradictory and implied she had fabricated the accusations.

After his acquittal, Da Silva suggested police targeted him because he is a defence lawyer unafraid to litigate racial profiling cases.

He is currently facing more charges laid last June, including criminal harassment, threatening death and assault. He is alleged to have sent a threatening text message to a woman. He also allegedly smashed her face against a door frame. He is scheduled to appear in court May 15.

Toronto police will investigate the latest texts if they receive a complaint, spokesman Mark Pugash said Monday.

The Law Society of Upper Canada does not comment on whether a complaint has been received, “or if we are investigating any specific matter, unless and until a matter has resulted in a formal discipline proceeding,” spokeswoman Susan Tonkin wrote in an email.

According to his online bio, Da Silva graduated from Osgoode Hall Law School and is a member of the Criminal Lawyers Association. That bio describes him as a “passionate believer in civil rights,” who brings a “human touch to his client relations while maintaining an aggressive and zealous attitude when defending his clients.”